OUROBOROS PROJECT

HANA FRISONSOVA + Michaela Karasek Cejkova

Ouroboros represents the idea of cyclicality and eternal return. The upcycling project explores the theme of constant re-creation and inevitable mutation of material heritage. Based on a creative collaboration between fashion designer Hana Frisonsova and photographer Michaela Karasek Cejkova, it shows photographic fashion collages printed on fabric, transformed by the use of various handcrafting techniques into a new composition. Hana considers handcrafting an essential part of her designer work and engages traditional techniques into her often futuristic artistic visions. Michaela is an artist and fashion photographer focused on making collages.

It is ultimately about recycling of ideas and modifying them in the process. The changes made by hand disrupt and simultaneously enhance the original design. Ouroboros plays with the idea of inevitable modification of repeated cycles and follows the process of mutation and deformity. When the final garment is modified by a fragment from the original one, the circle is closed. The Ouroboros installation and performance are both conceived as collages in which photographs and clothes interact and merge.

Muses of the project are my friends and performers, avant-garde electronica musicians HYENAZ. Their strong statement and almost mystical connection and energy fitted perfectly into the main concept. Based on our belief that time and energy come back in eternal circles, the original concept was further developed through our encounter with HYENAZ. We went to Berlin to shoot the upcycled pieces on them but in the end the artists' deep physical and spiritual connection played a key part in the forming of Ouroboros aesthetics. Michaela used the photos to make collages and I applied them on the garments and tapestry to transform them once again. In the final stage of the process, we shot a video with contemporary dancers and used music by HYENAZ. Their improvised choreography expresses their strong connection and dependence on each other, which to us represents another layer of the idea of Ouroboros.